Hendrick looks for 1st win of season at Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS — After winning 18 of 36 races last season, Hendrick Motorsports entered the year as the team to beat.

In two races so far this season, Hendrick drivers have yet to challenge for the win.

But Sunday’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway could be where the team breaks through. Jeff Gordon starts fourth, Dale Earnhardt Jr. starts eighth and Casey Mears is 11th.

Jimmie Johnson, the three-time defending race winner, was a disappointing 35th in qualifying. But the two-time defending Cup champion said there’s nothing to worry about, yet.

“We did win a lot of events, lead a lot of laps last year at Hendrick,” Johnson said. “But there were a lot of teams right there on our heels. It’s a little early I think to place judgment in either direction.”

Gordon said expectations have been raised throughout the industry, but Hendrick is just like any other team in that it’s still getting a feel for the full-time use of the Car of Tomorrow. Hendrick drivers won nine of the 16 races the car was used in last season.

“You can’t drive this car the same way you could drive the old car,” Gordon said. “Hendrick Motorsports is so good and so thorough and we have problems, like anybody else, but nobody analyzes them and fixes them faster and better and gives us more confidence every week than what they do.”

NOT APPEALING: JR Motorsports has dropped its appeal of the suspension of Nationwide Series crew chief Chad Walter.

Walter began his six-race suspension Saturday, with Lance McGrew serving as interim crew chief this weekend.

Walter was one of seven crew chiefs suspended for infractions found at the season-opening race in Daytona. JR Motorsports was found to have an illegal deck lid on Dale Earnhardt’s car following the first practice. Walter was fined $25,000 and Earnhardt was docked 50 points.

McGrew was moved to the crew from Hendrick Motorsports, which aligned itself with JR Motorsports this season.

Mark Martin was driving the car this weekend in Las Vegas, and said the change in crew chief didn’t faze him.

“It’s just one more new guy,” he said. “It actually is working well. I worked with Alan Gustafson last year with the No. 5 car until we got down to Homestead and then it was Chad. And now with Lance, another great guy with tremendous depth coming out of the Hendrick organization and all those guys that work on that car, worked on it last year when I did three races.

“So, I’m comfortable.”

ALL STUFFED UP: Kasey Kahne led Saturday’s final practice session, then raced his way out of the track to rest up for Sunday’s race.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports pulled Kahne from the Nationwide Series race, replacing him with Patrick Carpentier because Kahne is battling a sinus infection.

“Kasey was feeling absolutely terrible (Friday),” said Mark McCardle, vice president of competition for GEM. “After the first practice, we knew we might have to do something to allow Kasey the time to get better for Sunday’s race. It became more evident as the day went on, so we went with Patrick to drive the Nationwide race.

“He has been taking fluids and getting plenty of rest.”

The team tabbed Jason Keller to standby on Sunday if Kahne can’t race.

YOUR NAME HERE: Crown Royal is again donating its sponsorship of the May race in Richmond to a race fan, with Ohio native Dan Lowry winning the naming rights.

The race will officially be called “Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400.”

“It still hasn’t hit me that this is all real and that my name will actually be incorporated into the race title,” said Lowry, of New Waterford, Ohio.

Lowry was one of two finalists flown this week to Las Vegas, where Crown Royal announced the winner. Tim Weiland, the runner-up, received a custom Stage 1 Roush Fenway Ford Mustang.

Crown Royal selected the winners from approximately 10,000 written submissions chronicling consumers fondest Crown Royal memories.

PIT STOPS: Jimmie Johnson’s victory in the Cup race at Las Vegas last year started a streak of 12 straight wins by a Chevrolet driver. The streak extended through Pocono in June. … Bobby Labonte has a special paint scheme this weekend, a “Cheerios Circle of Helping Hearts” logo as encouragement for women to have their cholesterol checked. Through an online program, Cheerios will donate up to $300,000 to WomenHeart for free cholesterol screening in needy communities.